Simon moved to Birmingham to study Biological Sciences at Aston University. After a brief stint in finance, Simon completed his MSc at the IMI where he went to on to work as a technician in Jessica Blair’s Lab. Simon returned to the IMI to join the Grainger Lab after completing his PhD in Microbiology at the Institut Pasteur in Paris.

Rachel started work at UoB in 2006 as a research technician, later undertaking a part-time MSc in Clinical Oncology. During her time at UoB she has gained experience in cell culture, molecular biology, immunohistochemistry, clinical oncology, genomics, and in-depth Nanopore sequencing technology.  Outside the lab Rachel is a family person, enjoying spending time with her 2 children. Rachel joined the Grainger lab as senior research technician in December 2022, taking a new and exciting direction in her career to investigate the pathogenesis of bacteria.

Born and raised in Milton Keynes, Andrew completed his undergraduate Masters in Biochemistry at The University of Birmingham. As part of his degree he completed a year placement at GSK, before returning for his final year where he explored the mechanisms of acid resistance in E. coli. His fundamental interest is the regulation of antibiotic resistance, which brought him back to Birmingham and to the Grainger lab to complete his PhD. Andrew is funded by BBSRC as part of the MIBTP.

 

Charles, originally from London, spent most of his childhood in Portugal. He completed his integrated masters in biochemistry at the University of Oxford. He is interested in the regulation of antibiotic resistance and is studying these mechanisms in Acinetobacter baumanii. Charles is funded by the Wellcome Trust as part of the Wellcome Trust Doctoral Training Centre in Antimicrobials and Antimicrobial Resistance.

Ksenia grew up in Tomsk (Russia), where she did her undergraduate degree in Biosciences. After graduation she moved to London and worked for Latis Scientific, Alpha Scientific and Procter&Gamble as a microbiologist. Ksenia joined the Grainger Lab as a PhD student in 2020 to work on activation of antibiotic resistance mechanisms in bacteria. She is funded by The Darwin Trust of Edinburgh.

Alexandra is originally from Newcastle and completed her undergraduate degree in Biochemistry and Microbiology at the University of Sheffield. She went on to study her MSc Microbiology and Infection at The University of Birmingham. She is most interested in the mechanisms that cause antimicrobial resistance. Alexandra is funded by the BBSRC as part of the MIBTP.

David grew up in Sheffield, and much to his parents dismay stayed there to study for his undergraduate Masters degree at The University of Sheffield. He then moved to the Centre for Bacterial Cell Biology at Newcastle University for his PhD and first research associate job investigating a novel RNA polymerase in B.subtilis. Now in the Grainger lab, he’ll be looking into AT rich DNA and its role in bidirectional transcription initiation.

Emily is from Devon and moved to Birmingham in 2012 to study at the University of Birmingham. After graduating with an MSci in Human Biology she returned to the university as a PhD student and Research Technician with the Grainger lab. Upon completing her PhD Emily obtained a post-doctoral position in the lab. She is exploring pervasive transcription and its regulation in E. coli.

Dave trained as a biochemist and is interested in different aspects of bacterial chromosome biology, particularly gene regulation. He relocated his laboratory to the University of Birmingham in March 2011 having previously established a research group at the University of Warwick. He is a life-long supporter of Wolverhampton Wanderers FC. He believes this has made it easier to cope with the frequent disappointments that befall a research scientist.

Originally from London, James did his undergraduate degree in Microbiology and Virology at the University of Warwick, before completing his PhD in the Grainger lab. James currently studies the regulation of pathogenicity in Enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC) and Vibrio cholerae. James is funded by the Human Frontiers Science Program (HFSP).